quest log | following rumors

[moustre]

Who: Those signed up for the the High-Risk Quest "Following Rumors".
When: 06/10 to 06/13
Where: A cave deep within the Wilde.
What: From the quest information itself: "A few of our divination experts have spoken of a cave untouched by the corruption in their scrying, which is right exciting! We'll be sending in our Witches as well, but I'd like to offer this opportunity to those who've come in through The Looking-Glass House, too. It should be safe enough for just about anyone to visit, so find a friend or two and come on! Stuff like this is a rare find, dearests - it might give us a good hint about how to combat our corruption problem, too."
Warnings: In various prompts: spiders and other insects, corpses, risk of injury or death, magical corruption, physical sickness, hallucinogenics, and other imagery that may be disturbing. Each prompt header will be labeled with the appropriate warnings, so make sure you choose what you're comfortable dealing with, either ICly or OOCly! Additionally, sign ups aren't closed - if, after reading through the log, you'd like to sign up, you can still do so and play on here at your leisure.



The Way There

Most journeys into the Wilde don't actually go too far; those that do travel outside of the city end up somewhere in the land between, with its smaller patches of growth that feel as if they should be part of a forest, or at the very edge of the massive forest that seems to be ever expanding. Even now, new sprouts push through the dirt, some even as tall as a man despite being obviously new - they're still green and flexible, without any noticeable bark. The quests the Wilders take - and have put out at the Coven, as far as last month went - go a little deeper, to where the trees become far more autumnal, colored in golds and browns and oranges.

The cave spoken of is deeper still.

As the group marches in pairs, the trees turn from vibrant summer green and lushly decorated in flowers and fruits to the tell-tale colors of fall and winter, their bark gradually becoming more and more marred by an inky blackness that's sticky to the touch - sap, bleeding from the cracks between the bark. What animal life had been at the edge of the forest fades into a hollow quiet, the air becoming more oppressive - not unlike a certain shared dream experienced not too long ago. The silence is unnerving even to those with iron-clad hearts, giving off the feeling that something is about to happen -

and then suddenly, the feeling disappears, even as the quiet remains.

The area around the cave is lush with foliage; the trees look healthier than their counterparts outside of it, their bark free of any leakage and their branches hardly out of control. Closer inspection shows this is due to scraping and trimming, and after some discussion, the Wilders and Witches set up camp outside of the cave and gather together the group. Everyone is given the same basic necessities and instructions on how to use them, in a bag containing:

• A grappling hook enchanted to return to them with a tug
• Around twenty-feet of rope
• Three spell scrolls (a light spell, which will conjure a small ball of light that shows about a radius of twenty feet around the caster and lasts as long as the scroll remains in one piece; a minor healing spell with three charges; and a single-use flare spell that can be used as a distraction or to call for help, should the need arise)
• A tinder kit
• One day of rations
• A ring that glows when danger is nearby; it's enchanted to fit on anyone's finger, regardless of size

For characters unsuited footwear-wise to spelunking, they'll also receive a pair of sturdy boots.

The mission is simple: explore the cave and report back with their findings. It isn't just those who signed up going in; other Witches are suiting up to head in as well, talking in low voices about the probability of something like this even existing, especially with how deep they are in the Wilde. It isn't as if they're anywhere close to the center, but it's still in Wilder territory - they're far enough out that a few of them are nervous about encountering one of the bigger variety of Shades. Despite the reassurances that this cave is clean, and the fresh feeling it gives off, the murmurs continue until the mission officially begins.

Smugha Cave

The cave itself feels refreshing compared to the oppressive air felt on the way here, not unlike an oasis in a desert. Cool in temperature and a little damp, it's mostly dark aside from the sunlight coming in the front and the bio-luminescent cave flora that climb the walls - though those are still too dim to really see by. Heading further in reveals sharp cliffs with stair-like structures carved into them, inviting an easy way down into the depths, and landing at the bottom of these is a wide, dark room, even colder than the last.

It's time to start exploring.

I. The Water (cw: magical corruption, physical sickness)


For a cave located in the middle of the continent and in the depths of the ever-reaching forest, there certainly is a lot of water. Damp to the point that it might be considered humid if the cave was any warmer, puddles form beneath long stalactites, and shallow pools of water pour into each other from landing to landing; they populate the floor too, making walking a little treacherous. A few of them glow and glimmer with a faint, pale blue light from the magic runes found around them - these ones, at least, can be read. They're not so different from the script used in Aefenglom itself, though the way they've been carved into the stone makes them a little sharper in shape - for those in study at the Coven, or in spells in general, it's evidently a cooling spell. That isn't so hard to figure out though, as the pools of water surrounded by them have a pleasingly cold temperature, while those without them are near scalding. A few of the latter have runes around them, but they're not glowing like the rest - feeding a little magic into them changes this immediately, and steam rises in a sudden blast as the water cools rapidly. The opposite can be done for the colder pools too - taking their magic somehow or ruining the runes will make them bubble and boil as they surge in temperature. It'd be best to mind oneself around these, as unlike in a dream, any injury sustained in the waking world is a little more permanent and painful.

Three pools in particular have to them a translucent green shimmer, made a little more blue-green by the cooling spell carved and activated around them; they're deep enough to wade into, or even just sit by and rest one's feet in - both of which feel like very attractive ideas to anyone who looks at them a moment too long. The water is pleasantly cool, and those who take a quick rest in them will feel more refreshed than they have in years. Their worries will fade, the anxieties they've held in the back of their mind seeming to slide off into the water, but in place of it something new occurs: within fifteen minutes of resting in the pool, they'll begin to feel sick, and grey spots begin to appear on any wet skin. Longer than that, and those residing in the water will find their spots turning black instead, and a lot harder, too. This affects Witches quicker than it does Monsters, curiously enough - for Monsters, it takes almost double the time. Getting out and getting dry will temper the effects back down, though the feeling of being not quite refreshed lingers.

That isn't all the water the cave has to offer - the large cavern has a sudden, massive drop in the form of a sinkhole on about halfway across the room; it leads to a similarly massive underground lake. Traveling around the rim of the sinkhole shows there's multiple waterfalls pouring into it soundlessly, pooled together from the pools of water running into one another. Thankfully, there's another way down other than just diving headfirst into the darkness - twin tunnels on each side of of the sinkhole, not quite natural in nature, lead down to the lake in a gently winding slope.

Starting shallow before getting much deeper in the middle, the lake also has an inviting feeling to it, stronger in its suggestion to simply take a load off, to let anxieties and worries simply soak and sink away in its pleasantly tempered waters - but it also has a stronger reaction in those who enter its depths. Within five minutes, those within it begin to feel sick, the grey spots showing up on their wet skin, and the rate of their blackening and hardening is quicker as well. This, once more, affects Witches quicker - and, just like before, getting dry will make alleviate the sickness and the spotting both, with the discomfort lingering long after.

In both the upper and lower caverns, there are tunnels leading to other parts of the cave - they might just be worth checking out...
II. The Upper Tunnels (cw: risk of injury, spiders and other insects, hallucinogenics)


The tunnels leading from the upper cavern stay relatively horizontal, with small hills and valleys among their turns and a lower ceiling that might have people higher than five-and-a-half-feet ducking a little; they're more like a labyrinth than anything else, with empty metal sconces beginning to appear further within them. Sharp, thick nails have been hammered into the stone as well, with leather pouches rotted and torn hanging from them - whatever were in these hasn't remained, either due to wildlife or decay. Small rooms and caverns shooting off from the tunnels hold much of the same, albeit with a few other items: jackets and other clothing, Coven robes, specially-tailored Monster wear, instruments with snapped strings or clogged holes, candles burnt to the wick. One room in particular holds a few bookshelves, though the wood is also in poor condition due to the dampness of the cave, and the books suffer for this as well. What ones can be made out seem to be standard fare: the type of books one might expect to find in the fiction section, ranging from romance to horror to fantasy, and a few Coven textbooks on spellwork, specifically basic transfiguration. Not all of this is so old, however - some of it seems newer the closer explorers get to the "end" of the tunnels, either landing them in a room or at an ordinary dead-end.

Unfortunately, the tunnels aren't as safe as they seem: giant spiders make their homes among the caverns and tunnels, made obvious by the webbing that appears before their funnel-like traps. They range from the size of large dogs to horses, but all of them have the same venomous bite that causes hallucinations, deliriousness, and fatigue. Among giant mushrooms whose spores paralyze those who breathe them in live similarly large millipedes, incredibly long and vicious; they attack in pairs, but thankfully just have very, very painful bites. Last but not least are bats - regular sized, plentiful as they might be in any cave, and just as annoying, too.
III. The Lower Tunnels (cw: risk of injury or death, imagery that may be disturbing, corpses, physical sickness)


Meanwhile, the tunnels leading from the lower cavern have higher ceilings and are mostly flooded (about waist-high) due to the nearby lake; water permeates through the rock in rivulets, darker than the lake above, and give a similar effect to the water in the lake itself. Thankfully, they're also mostly iced over - walking on them takes practice and a careful eye, considering the ice is thin in places. The air becomes more frigid as the tunnel dips down, with smaller caverns sharing the same fate: covered in ice and icicles, their entrances sometimes a little too squished to get through without breaking the ice or being particularly small in stature. Those traveling might notice a trend if they look a little too closely at the clearer parts of the ice as well: scratch marks gouging into it, as if something'd been trying desperately to get out. The longest tunnel opens up into a frozen room, as tall as the lower cavern itself, sconces lit with pale blue fire - magic, and obviously so. The walls glitter beautifully with the light, but looking down into the depths below, past the sheet of ice that allows travel, reveals something horrifying: dozens of thin husks and corpses of animals and adventurers both, held in place by the ice as it stretches down like spikes into the water. Witches, Monsters, Shades, other creatures - not a single one spared, with a mix of infected and non-infected among them.

These tunnels aren't exactly safe either: ice-breathing salamanders the size of elephants can be found resting in some of the caverns - though they might be hard to see, given their pale white and blue scales. While not infected (curious), they're incredibly aggressive and attack those who wake them or get too close. Their bites can inflict frostbite the same as their breath can, so caution is advised in dealing with these. When killed they remain intact, their blood creating an extra layer of ice on whatever it touches due to its chilly temperature, not unlike liquid nitrogen.

Unfortunately, they're not the only things those adventuring in the depths have to worry about. To be precise, Shades of Monsters and Witches also roam some of the tunnels shooting off from the larger, main one; the latter pulses brightly with white veins of magic on their blackened skin. Both types of Shades are sluggish, likely due to the cold and the lack-of pure magic, but are experts on dealing with walking on ice. The Witches in particular are ticking time-bombs, every spell they cast - primarily of snaring-type spells, desiring the magic and flesh of whom they capture - risking an explosion, but when they do supernova... It's fairly localized to somewhere between five to seven feet of the Shade in question. Those within that radius, however, will feel physically sick and find their skin or fur-scale-feathers-so-on turning into sharp, black shards of ice and infection due to the corrupted magic exploding from the Shade.

Either way, once killed the Shades fall apart and turn into thin, brittle corpses of what they used to be; they're old enough that when touched, they simply crumble as if made of ash.
IV. Outside The Cave (cw: nothing)


For those seeking a little relaxation or recovery can make their way back outside - or be helped that way, given their flares. There, Witches can take care of them, food can be shared, and in general, people can take a breather. As the first day closes, and the cave proves itself to be bigger than expected, Witches will also offer to teleport people back to the city should they wish to go - staying would be nice, but they aren't going to force anyone to stay who doesn't want to. They'll also be collecting information from those who've ventured inside, encouraging each person to share with each other their findings as well.

(Note: Essentially, this is more of an open/breather prompt, considering the heavier nature of some of the prompts above; any injuries or infection sustained can be healed here, extra supplies can be gotten, as well as anything that might need specialized storage - such as bottles, cages for small animals, and so on. Characters can be teleported back to Aefenglom in small batches occurring every hour should they choose, but they cannot be teleported back; it's a one-way trip. Otherwise, at the end of the three day stay, the same trek will be made back to the city, and the quest will be considered "completed"... Until further notice. Any questions can be asked here.)

Comments

[whomthebelltolls]

[Not a dragon. Not nearly. Nothing so important as that, which also means nothing so dangerous, and Maria prefers that to anything worse. The shot to the eye definitely distracts the beast, and that gives her an opportunity to launch her attack, as well. It wants to go after the gunman, so she gives the beast a new target, as she turns her blades toward anywhere that looks like it will yield most readily beneath the sharp edges.

She shifts down, though, because Maria is very tall, and tries for an upward angle. The sound the lizard makes as the blades pierce its side, as they cut into flesh and organs and slice upward is a bit indescribable, but "pained" is definitely a word for it. Maria simply turns her head away as the icy cold blood spills up her gloves and over her arms, making sure it doesn't splash up onto her face.

Hm. Blood should definitely be hot. Not so cold she can feel it stiffening her gloves.]

[gunsmithed]

[ The sound is certainly enough to catch Percy's attention, his eyes flick back towards the lizard long enough to register that giving the thing two targets is doing wonders for distraction. Then again, so is being sliced open.

It gives him the time to pivot, reload the refile without looking, and then brace Bad News back against his shoulder. He sights it out, then holds there fore a moment, two.. The lizard is still thrashing around, but it looks like the swordswoman is holding guard, more the better. The shot through the eye didn't kill it and having it's stomach slashed open hasn't killed it, dragon it might not be, but it's still tougher than Percy likes. He holds his breath for just a second, tracking as the lizard thrashes around in pain, and the fires the instant he sees his opening.

The bullet slams right into the thing's open mouth, bypassing tough scales for much softer flesh. If the screaming wasn't pained before it is now, but the lizard is slowing, staggering. One more hit should do it. ]

[whomthebelltolls]

[Maria's not sure she's really doing any of the heavy lifting here, but being a distraction is good, too, and the shot that rings out and splatters lizard innards all over the walls behind them is a good indication that this short-lived battle is definitely almost over.

She can't let the gunman take all the credit, though, and she turns her sword inward as the lizard flails and thrashes about in its final moments, aiming her swords for the throat as she side-steps claw, feels it rake her clothes but not pierce them very deeply, and drives her swords into the throat, aiming to sever veins and throat cartilage alike as she carves the thrashing head halfway from its body, and helps the lizard fall.

He can put another bullet in it afterward, though, if he likes. It does give a few weak kicks afterward, as though the brain is still sending a few fight or flight impulses.

And, exhausted, Maria takes a step back, breathing heavily and trying to shake the flood of frozen blood off her gloves.]

[gunsmithed]

[ Percy's need to be certain momentarily goes to war with the urge to conserve ammunition, and in the end he slowly lowers the rifle. Considering the amount of blood on the floor, if it isn't dead now, it will be soon enough, and that will have to do. He slings Bad News back over his shoulder and finally turns back towards his companion, only to find himself frowning slightly at the tired slump of her shoulders. ]

Are you alright?

[ The way she's shaking her hands is puzzling for a second, until the thought flickers in that the blood could be acidic. He's still frowning as he makes his way towards her, carefully skirting the finally-still lizard corpse. ]

Here. [ He pulls a somewhat ragged-looking cloth from his pocket, one of the ones he uses to maintain his guns. It seems like a worth sacrifice. ]

[whomthebelltolls]

Mm... it's so cold it burns. [One might think it's the blood she's shaking off her hands and onto the floor, right now, all things considered, but a moment later, she looks down at where the claws raked against her leg, and the bloody streaks visible through her pants. Not a grievous amount of blood, but enough.

When she looks back to him, he's holding his handkerchief out, and she considers for a brief moment, before shaking her head.] No, save it. [And reaches for her cape, bringing it up to wipe some of the blood away.] It's why we wear the capes, back home.

... I think it more important we leave this place for now, though.

[gunsmithed]

[ He can't quite help but quirk an eyebrow slightly, but Percy tucks the cloth back away without comment. His eyes flick briefly towards her leg, but there isn't much he can do about it, even if she'd let him. No potions here, which suddenly seems like a grievous oversight. Nothing to be done about it now, but very much something to keep in mind.

And she's very much not wrong, besides. He straightens a bit, casting a measuring look at the walls around them. ]

It seems like too much ice, for just one of those things. [ Not that he knows the faintest thing about what it was, but it stands to reason. ] Good chance there's more of them about.

[whomthebelltolls]

[She's going to start digging through that satchel to figure out where she put the healing spell scrolls, as she turns back to the cavern.]

Yes... and there's a stench in the air. Smells like burning and rot... it might be Shades... or just a source of corruption. We should be cautious leaving.

[gunsmithed]

[ Cautious, he can certainly do. Percy leaves the rifle on his back for a moment, if they're going to be heading back to the more narrow passages, but he pulls his pistol instead just to have it to hand. ]

Agreed. Did you run into any of the spiders, before?

[ As if they weren't bad enough. Percy is not particularly impressed with these caves, to put it lightly. ]

[whomthebelltolls]

Yes. I saw them, and the books they guarded. Someone lived here, though it must have been long ago. [Or relatively so, at least. She frowns as she comes up with a scroll, and unravels it enough to see if it's the healing one, or what... and it is. Okay.]

They were at least easy to dispatch.

[gunsmithed]

I'd still rather not deal with too many of them at a time. And whatever else is down here.

[ Not with just the two of them, at least. Enclosed areas like this are not the best for those sorts of fights, and if they can be avoided, Percy would much prefer that. What he wouldn't give for a ranger at the moment. Or perhaps one very specific one. ]

I don't think I caught your name?

[whomthebelltolls]

That is true. I was fortunate enough that their fangs did not pierce my clothing, but I would not want to see if their bite was deadly - or something worse. [No thank you on the potential for neurotoxins.]

I am Maria. And you are?

[gunsmithed]

[ Perhaps it's the fact that Percy's attention is much more focused on their surroundings and keeping and eye out for other movement, or maybe it's her own offer of just her first name, but he absently skips his usual recitation of his full name in favor of a quick: ] Call me Percy.

[ And there, faintly echoing against the rock is something that sounds almost like...skittering. Percy pulls in a breath. ]

How fast can you move?

[whomthebelltolls]

[And finally, the frown on her face gives way to something closer to relief as she pulls out the rolled-up piece of parchment with a familiar incantation of healing on it.]

Much faster now, I would think. [A quick cast, and she can feel the wounds closing. It's less like a fresh wound now, and more like one more readily healed. A bit of a twinge of pain, but ignorable. Maria lets a slow sigh.]

... You would run past them, yes?

[gunsmithed]

[ His eyes flick towards her as she produces the scroll, and Percy can't help but watch as the magic is cast. Clever, that. Maybe later he'll wonder why it never occurred to him to attempt the same.

For now, he nods once. ]

If we can. I suspect we want to be through all of this sooner rather than later.

[ Percy has no illusions that it won't probably come to another fight. It always does. But they can at least attempt to avoid one. ]

[whomthebelltolls]

True, and I'm not sure how much we want to risk stopping to fight, in case they have greater numbers.

[If nothing else, they can get into a more advantageous position, and use that to thin the numbers of the Shades. Or... just end up aggroing the entire cave back outside, and hoping all the Witches up there can help them with it.

... No time like the present to find out what it's going to be.] Perhaps we can pause where the ice ends to get better footing. Shall we?

[She's already picking up the pace toward a tunnel in the distance that seems to curve up.]

[gunsmithed]

[ Percy takes off running after her by way of an agreement, though he keeps the pistol in his hand rather than tucking it away for extra speed. As much as they're trying to avoid an issue, being ready if one comes is worth the bit of extra effort.

They're almost to the tunnel before Percy catches sight of a shadow moving. Not enough to tell what, but he's not all that interested in stopping to see, either. ]

To the left. [ It's a bit brusque, called over the sounds of their footsteps. ] Do you see?

[whomthebelltolls]

Mm? [She doesn't want to look too far, change directions or speeds - she learned as a young one in Cainhurst just what ice does to those who carelessly move around, and especially at speed, but she does tuck her head and look.

... There's definitely a shadow. If it's predatory, it will take their running as prey movement. So they can try to stop and fight it, or...]

Yes. At the least, let's find somewhere with more room to fight.

[gunsmithed]

We might be able to outrun it.

[ Or at least make themselves enough of a nuisance that it will find a better target. Either way, they're apparently in agreement to keep moving, so Percy puts his head down and runs. What he wouldn't give for his spider-climb boots at the moment.

The tunnels are confusing at best, but finding the ones that angle upwards seems to be working out for the most part. Though he can still hear the sounds of something moving behind them. ]

[whomthebelltolls]

Then we should just keep moving. [Sometimes, you just didn't want to chance the Watchers. Sometimes, you just wanted to run from them, even though the catacombs got confusing. Maria just keeps her pace as it is, trying to concentrate on just keeping upright and keeping moving.

... That noise is disconcerting, though, and she turns, nearly slips on a patch of thinner ice - they're getting into warmer climes, and it's starting to melt, which makes it particularly slippery underfoot, only to realize that's not the best way to go. Changing directions, though, seems to take up valuable time, as she has to try to regain her footing, and turn a different way.] I don't think we want to keep this way. To the left.

[gunsmithed]

[ She slips and Percy skids, but he doesn't hesitate to follow her instructions. He does, on the other hand, lift his pistol as they make their way to the other path, firing the second he sees the tunnel split. The sound is almost deafening in the smaller space, but the bullet ricochets off one wall and then another and another, hopefully enough sound and motion for something to follow rather than trying to chase the two of them. Worth an attempt, at least.

And he can hear something scurrying in the wake of the sound, though which direction it's going is harder to tell. ]

We're getting closer. I can probably hold them off, if you want to try to make a run for it.

[ It's an absent offer, given without thinking. ]

[whomthebelltolls]

I think we have it far enough behind. I wouldn't leave you to face it alone, even if you can. [Says the person who prefers to work alone... okay, she can work in small teams, but Hunting was a pretty small group activity.]

If we make it to a place without ice, we can stop and see if we're still pursued. If so, we can dispatch it then.

[gunsmithed]

[ Fair enough. He nods once and lets the pistol fall to his side again as he concentrates on keeping his feet, and making sure that she can keep hers. They're almost out, no reason to get sloppy now. ]

There may be others still exploring the upper levels.

[ They haven't run into any else so far, but Percy would hate to be leading something hungry directly towards an unsuspecting person. Better that they find somewhere to stand their ground, if they need. ]

[whomthebelltolls]

Hm... but there might be advantage to having higher numbers. [As long as they're properly warned and not led right to the confusing people who decided to embark on this expedition with no formal combat training and a loose grasp on magics that could be useful in a fight, or barely-transformed Beast appendages that wouldn't be as useful as a fully transformed one in a fight. Though, that was their decision.]

Hopefully it loses interest before then... though... [All this uphill running is starting to exhaust her, actually, but she keeps pressing on. Soon enough, the ice starts to thin out, splotches and pieces on the ground rather than covering most of it, and it's easier to keep footing as they continue the ascent.

If there's a chamber nearby they can turn and fight, that would be fine... if not, then, well... keep going it is, but she keeps her eye out for the former.]

[gunsmithed]

[ Percy's breathing is getting more than a bit labored as well, and the conversation dies off in favor of just running. If there is going to be a fight, they'll need some energy left for it, and that's already draining fast. What he wouldn't give for Scanlan's mansion, right now.

But eventually he does spot something that looks likely, even if it's less chamber and more large alcove. But he does manage to breath out a quick, ] there [ as he shifts direction enough to head for it. It's a start, at least. And somewhere to catch their breath, if they find they might need a larger battleground. ]

[whomthebelltolls]

[Unfortunately, they're both stuck out in the wilderness; and while long treks into hostile cave environments don't always bother Maria, all the strange circumstances of this world are... certainly slow to get used to. It's times like these that she misses the effects of the blood transfusion. No matter what it, and its reaction to Annalise's blood, did to her.]

Alright. [She gets the message, though, turning into the alcove, running a few steps back, but leaving some space to wiggle from side to side to prevent being "cornered" in the area, as it were, and holds her swords at the ready, facing back down the path.

It's a wait. The sounds are still down there, though with the echo, it's actually quite hard to tell if they're getting closer, and the dim light of the torch-spells only goes so far.]